Pilgrims travelling on bus roof hit by tree branch; 1 dies, 2 critical

Pilibhit: In a freak accident, three pilgrims travelling on the roof of a bus were hit by a tree branch, killing one of them and critically injuring the other two. The incident happened on Bhind-Lipulekh NH 731 in UP's Pilibhit around 1 am on Tuesday.
The private bus -- carrying 60 pilgrims, mostly from Bulandshahr district -- was returning from Purnagiri temple in Champawat district of Uttarakhand. They had started their journey from Bulandshahr on March 29.
Hearing screams of the three men who fell off, the driver stopped the vehicle. Sudhir Kumar, 32, and Rajveer, 45, (both from Bulandshahr) and Ravi Singh, 38, (from Aligarh) were rushed to district hospital where Kumar was declared dead. The other two were shifted to a medical facility in Bareilly.
Pilibhit Kotwali SHO Rajiv Kumar Singh said, "The incident happened near Piparia under Neuria police station. Five pilgrims were sitting on the roof of the bus, and three of them were struck by a branch. The body was sent for autopsy."
Additional regional transport officer (Pilibhit) Virendra Singh said the bus had a sitting capacity of 61 and a valid tourist permit. "According to bus driver Mohammad Sabir, after stopping for dinner in Khatima of US Nagar district, five pilgrims insisted on sitting on the bus roof for ‘fresh air'. Even after repeated pleas by the driver, they remained adamant on travelling on the roof. Investigation is on," Singh said.
Notably, the incident took place on an under-construction stretch of the national highway, which still operates as a two-lane road, locals said.